Today in Music: I’m Not Dead Yet!

No, they’re not going away, as originally reported. Instead, New Order will be Hookless. While bassist Peter Hook has claimed that the band was over and done with, two thirds of the original lineup, Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris, in a public statement said, “After 30 years in a band together we are very disappointed that Hooky has decided to go to the press and announce unilaterally that New Order have split up,” adding, “He does not speak for all the band, therefore we can only assume he no longer wants to be a part of New Order.” While the statement doesn’t reveal what the band might do next, we can only wait. Here’s the band performing “Krafty” from their last album, Waiting for the Siren’s Call, live on Jimmy Kimmel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLpNUQ2MtaE

Also not ready to throw in the towel, despite recent proclamations (and retractions), Patrick Wolf has proven he’s still feisty. The 24-year old English musician has revealed seven new songs on his MySpace blog that will appear on his next album. Judging by the aquatic them of songs like “Octopus,” “Anemone,” and “Oyster Shell,” you can either expect the young songwriter to dive into the ocean at the end of his tour in November and live the rest of his days under the sea, eating tasty crustaceans, or, more likely that he’ll immerse himself in the the archetypal water imagery and refresh himself artistically and creatively so that he might return to the stage where he belongs. I’m going with option one.

Here’s one of the many live videos you can find of Patrick Wolf performing on YouTube. You can just tell how painful it is for him to be on stage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2NUZIgxu4M

Speaking of the undead, be sure to check out Vampire Weekend this Sunday at 3:00 pm, live on KEXP. Then, later that night, KEXP is proud to present Vampire Weekend at Neumo’s. Getcher tickets now.